Month: August 2019
Uncertain Future: Regulatory changes needed to attract foreign miners
Dipesh Dipu, Mineral Policy Consultant, Brookings India With the new government taking charge at the centre, and the efforts of NITI Aayog’s high-level committee on mining in consulting various industry stakeholders, hopes of growth and […]
IIT Kanpur and Ericsson partner to address growing air pollution in Delhi
The Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur and Ericsson have signed an MoU to deploy an narrowband internet of things-based sensor network to monitor air pollution in Delhi. As part of the MoU, Ericsson will use […]
Google India’s Internet Saathi Programme expanded to Punjab and Odisha
Google India’s Internet Saathi programme has now been extended to the states of Punjab and Odisha. In Punjab, the programme will cover around 5,000 villages while in Odisha, it will cover over 16,000 villages. The […]
Aditya Birla Idea Payments Bank shuts down operations
Aditya Birla Idea Payments Bank Limited has shut its operations only 17 months into the business. The decision is due to a lack of funds for continuing operations and unanticipated developments that have made the […]
Vodafone M-Pesa shuts down operations in India
Vodafone’s mobile phone-based banking service M-Pesa has reportedly shut shop in India with effect from July 15, 2019. The move is due to regulatory curbs and stress in the phone banking sector.
Department of Posts decides to convert India Post Payments Bank to small finance bank
The Department of Posts has decided to convert the India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) into a small finance bank to provide microcredit to individuals and small and medium enterprises at their doorstep. Besides, it aims […]
Vodafone Idea selects Amdocs to consolidate its postpaid operations
Vodafone Idea has selected Amdocs to consolidate its post-paid operations for retail and enterprise customers across mobile and fixed line services. As part of the multi-year agreement, Idea’s post-paid customers will be migrated to the […]
Government disburses over Rs 200 billion for BharatNet project
The government has disbursed Rs 204.31 billion for the BharatNet project till date. Of this, Rs 102.86 billion has been disbursed for Phase I and Rs 101.45 billion for Phase II.
11,000 hotspots to be soon set up in Delhi to provide free Wi-Fi services
The Expenditure Finance Committee (EFC) of the Delhi government has given its approval to the “hotspot” model, under which free internet will be provided to the residents of Delhi. Further, the EFC has approved a […]
DoT’s TEC starts issuing telecom equipment test certificates
The Telecommunication Engineering Centre, DoT’s technical wing, has started issuing certificates to telecom equipment manufacturers after testing their products in government-certified laboratories. The first set of certificates has been issued to Matrix Comsec, a Vadodara-based […]
TRAI directs operators to submit monthly status report on complaints regarding pesky calls
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has issued a directive asking telecom operators to submit a monthly status report of complaints regarding pesky calls within 10 days from the end of each month starting […]
DoT signs MoU with ICRIER to develop broadband readiness index for states and UTs
DoT has signed an MoU with the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations to develop a broadband readiness index (BRI) for Indian states and union territories. The BRI will have two parts. The […]
Telecom ministry approves BSNL, MTNL revival plan
The telecom ministry has reportedly approved a revival plan for state-run operators Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL). As per the plan, MTNL will be made a subsidiary of BSNL. […]
DCC approves penalty worth Rs 30.5 billion on Airtel and Vodafone Idea; takes other key decisions
The Digital Communications Commission (DCC) has approved the imposition of a cumulative penalty worth Rs 30.5 billion on Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea for not providing points of interconnection to Reliance Jio. Further, the DCC […]
DoT issues guidelines for conducting 5G trials across all available spectrum bands
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has issued guidelines for conducting 5G trials across all available spectrum bands and has fixed a uniform fee of Rs 5,000 for the trial licence. As per the guidelines, the […]
Rajya Sabha passes Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2019
The Rajya Sabha passed the Motor Vehicle (Amendment) Bill, 2019, on July 31, 2019. Amendments to the bill will aid improvements in road safety, enhance citizen facilitation with transport departments, and strengthen rural transport, public […]
NHAI opens second elevated section of Phase III of Delhi-Meerut expressway
NHAI has opened the second elevated section starting from Masuri under Phase III of the Delhi-Meerut expressway project. The 2.5 km Masuri elevated section has three lanes on each side of the elevated corridor, and […]
MoRTH targets pan-India deployment of FASTag by December 1, 2019
The government has decided to declare all lanes at toll plazas on national highways as FASTag lanes with effect from December 1, 2019. The electronic toll collection at FASTag lanes will ensure seamless traffic and […]
